No rest for Aonghus

Most of you will undoubtedly be aware that SIM member Aonghus McAnally is a superb all round entertainer. Testiment to this is a full diary.  Aongus must have to staple extra pages in to his these days.  

He is currently in the middle of touring with the fantastic When Jolie Met Christie (WJMC).  A marvellous biographic show which illustrates beatifully the contrast between Chrsitie Hennessy and his idol Al Jolson.  You can view an earlier report we filed on this show and make sure you catch it by checking out the tour dates here.

Fresh from the Cork run of WJMC Aongus hopped on the red eye to England to emcee the Gala Show of the British IBM and from there, according to his twitter, onward to gig in Lanzarote.  Not content with that Aongus is also presenting Mooney on RTÉ Radio 1 for two weeks by day and gigging WJMC by night.

Nice to see soemone so talented and genuinly nice having a great run.  Congrats Mr McAnally.

British IBM Convention and the Irish

The British Ring of the IBM hold their annual convention in Southport from 22nd September to the 25th September and this year Irish artists will appear on the opening and closing shows.  Pat Fallon will emcee the opening night show and will also feature on the last daytime event on Sunday, The Great Debate.  Meanwhile Aonghus Mcanally, fresh from his tour of When Joile Met Christie, will emcee the Sunday night Gala Show which also boasts Michael Finney, Rafael and a host of others.

Members of the SIM (as a member society of FISM) are entitled to a discount on registration.  Full registration is £125 but SIM members will be charged £110.  Full details on this fabulous weekend are available on the British Ring convention website.

Aonghus McAnally Tours "When Jolie Met Christie"

We reported back in March that this was in the offing and we are now delighted to let you know that SIM member Aonghus McAnally is going on tour with the much lauded When Jolie Met Christie.  Immeaditely after the tour Aonghus jets off to the UK to emcee the IBM British Ring Gala Show. 

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Well known Irish performer and broadcaster, Aonghus McAnally tours around Ireland this autumn with the popular and hugely successful show, WHEN JOLIE MET CHRISTIE, about the life and music of much loved Tralee singer songwriter Christie Hennessy.   Having previously wooed audiences and received nightly standing ovations throughout its original run at axis: Ballymun in March, the show now opens at 16 Irish venues from mid-September to mid-November (tour schedule below). 

Under the guise of broadway entertainer, Al Jolson, (a childhood hero of Christie’s), Aonghus McAnally narrates Christie Hennessy’s life story - contrasting the struggles and triumphs of both singers’ lives - as he delivers poignant renditions of Hennessy classics such as  “Jealous Heart”, “Don’t Forget Your Shovel”, “Messenger Boy” and “Roll Back The Clouds”.  Aonghus is accompanied on vocals by Galway singer, Nuala Ní Chanainn and on keyboard by the show’s musical director Ivan McKenna. 

An axis: Ballymun production, WHEN JOLIE MET CHRISTIE was written by Seán McCarthy, is directed by Ray Yeates, and designed by artist Robert Ballagh.  Lighting design is by Conleth White and costumes are designed by Marie Tierney.

In WHEN JOLIE MET CHRISTIE, writer Seán McCarthy questions the motivation of great performers and the sacrifices they make to realise their dreams.  He explains:  “Having the courage to be so open and emotionally honest is something both Christie Hennessy and Al Jolson shared on a deep level. To me, both represent the two faces of show business – the utterly selfless and the completely self-obsessed.  Yet their aim was identical – to strike a chord to show the “us” in them and the “them” in “us”.

WHEN JOLIE MET CHRISTIE is a great night’s entertainment – it is poignant yet funny and has the ingredients to appeal to a broad theatre going audience, as well as to people who love Christie Hennessy’s music.

TOUR SCHEDULE - WHEN JOLIE MET CHRISTIE

September 13^th-17^th  Axis Theatre, Ballymun, Dublin 9.  Booking:  01 883 2100; www.axis-ballymun.ie

 September 19^th-24^th: Everyman Palace Theatre, MacCurtain Street, Cork.  Booking:  021 450 1673; www.everymanpalace.com

October 6^th  Solstice Arts Centre, Navan, Co. Meath. Booking:  046 909 2300; www.solsticeartscentre.com

October 7^th & 8^th  The Pavilion Theatre, Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin.  Booking:  01 231 2929; www.paviliontheatre.ie

October 12^th  Dunamaise Arts Centre & Theatre, Portlaoise, Co. Laois.  Booking:  057 866 3355; www.dunamaise.ie 

October 13^th  Riverbank Arts Centre, Newbridge, Co. Kildare.  Booking:  045 448 330; www.riverbank.ie

October 14^th  Siamsa Tíre, Tralee, Co. Kerry.  Booking:  066 7123055; www.siamsatire.com

October 19^th & 20^th:  Belltable Arts Centre, O’Connell Street, Limerick.  Booking:  061 319866; www.belltable.ie

October 22^nd  Draíocht Arts Centre, Blanchardstown, Dublin 15.  Booking:  01 885 2622; www.draiocht.ie       

October 29^th  Watergate Theatre, Parliament Street, Kilkenny.  Booking: 056-7761674; www.watergatetheatre.com

November 3^rd & 4^th  The Civic Theatre, Tallaght, Dublin 24

November 7^th  Glór Theatre, Ennis, Co. Clare.  Booking:  065 6843103; www.glor.ie

November 9^th  The Linenhall Arts Centre, Castlebar, Co. Mayo.  Booking:  094 902373; www.thelinenhall.com

November 11^th  The Dock Arts Centre, Carrick-on-Shannon, Co. Leitrim.  Booking: 071 9650828; www.thedock.ie

November 16^th & 17^th  Droichead Arts Centre, Drogheda, Co. Louth.  Booking: 041 9833946;  www. droicheadartscentre.com

November 18^th  Mermaid Theatre, Bray, Co. Wicklow.  Booking:  01- 272 4030; www.mermaidartscentre.ie

Aonghus and Bob DeNiro

As we reported at the end of May Aonghus McAnally was due to fly over to New York to interview Robert DeNiro for a TV Documentary to be screened on TG4 this Christmas.  Well that meeting has now taken place and here are the pics to prove it.  What a cool snaps to have for the family album.

Aonghus McAnally and Robert De Niro

Shenanigans emcee and all round fab entertainer Aonghus McAnally is currently filming a TV documentary on the life of his farther, actor Ray McAnally.  It is being produced by Brian Reddin of Dearg Films and is expected to be broadcast on TG4 this Christmas.  Ray McAnally is considered to be one of the finest acting talents this country ever produced and notably starred in The Mission with Robert De Niro.  Aonghus has tweeted quite a lot about the various names he has so far interviewed for this special and close to the heart documentary.  The list is quite impressive and includes Liam Neeson, Stephen Rea, Jeremy Irons and now Robert De Niro.  We cannot wait to see this and will let you know the air date as soon as we get it.

A host of local talent round up the line up for Shenanigans

A host of local talent have been added to the line up for Shenanigans The Irish Magic Convention which starts next Friday 29th April at The Crowne Plaza Hotel, Blanchardstown.  Jack Wise, Pat Fallon & Gill, Nevin Cody, Aonghus McAnally, Tony Sadar (pictured), Brendan Byrne and Reuben will feature over the weekend as either presenters on the "Sessions" or perform on the various Shenanigans Shows.

Remember your full Gold Card registration is an unbelievable €110 (€55 for Partners & Guardians) and includes Saturday dinner and Sunday lunch.  It also includes admission to the After Banquet Cabaret and Sunday Gala Show.  Organisers encourage you to bring family and friends to both the Saturday Dinner and Sunday Gala Show.  You can download flyers for the public shows here.  

You can pre-register and pay on arrival by filling out the form on The Shenanigans Website. Organisers have asked you do as they are pre-printing registration badges.  For all the full details visit www.irishmagicconvention.com

Aonghus in When Jolie Met Christie

When Jolie Met Christie is the superb new production starring producer, broadcaster and magician Aonghus McAnally currently running at The Axis Theatre, Ballymun.  

Your editor along with Nevin Cody went last night to see what all the fuss was about.  Fuss that we found out is very well deserved.  It is on the surface a biography of the great singer songwriter Christie Hennessy narrated by his idol Al Jolson.  Aonghus plays both roles with aplomb.  Musically few are better and Aonghus' love, respect and mastery of the guitar are all on show.  Ably backed and in the case of his accompanying violinist & backing vocalist sublimely so, we are treated to the Christie Hennessy songbook.

It may be a biography on the surface but once scratched conjures up a beautiful, poignant and at times distressing tale of a simple, easy man making his way in the world.  In stark contrast to his hero Al who despite all the trappings of wealth and fame is "popular in public but never in private".  At it's essence, as with all good theatre, is conflict.  The conflict and oppositeness of the lives of two me who never met and lived in different era's yet were inextricably linked.  Full credit to writer Séan McCarthy and director Ray Yeats for a great story well told.  Roll back the years or should that be clouds and see for yourself.

When Jolie Met Christie runs until the 12th March at The Axis, Ballymun and your editor would be surprised if it didn't tour.  For full details click here.

Update on Saturday, March 19, 2011 at 1:43PM by Brendan Byrne

According to Aongus' Twitter is looks like a tour is in the offing.  We'll keep you posted on developments.

Aonghus McAnally's :: When Jolie Met Christie

SIM member, past emcee of many magic gala shows, amateur magician, professional broadcaster and raconteur extraordinaire Aonghus McAnally will star in "When Jolie Met Christie" at the Axis Theatre Ballymun from 1st-12th March with previews 24th - 26th February.  It is production based on the life of Christie Hennesy.   

Christie Hennessy was a unique performer whose songs have been recorded by artists such as Christie Moore and Frances Black, he had for some time, been planning a special new performance telling the story of his life and work to premiére at the Axis. Sadly this was not to be, but Axis' director Ray Yeates, writer Seán McCarthy and well-known RTÉ presenter and broadcaster Aonghus McAnally have continued to work together to produce this new cabaret-theatre piece about Christie's life.

Aonghus together with the Axis have very generously offered a reduced price for readers of IMN.  Full details here.

Aonghus McAnally compered this years IBM British Ring Convention Gala Show...

...and brought plaudits from all around. According to Richard Morrell's review over on Magic Convention Guide 

"Aonghus McAnally compered the show with a mixture of wit and song. His main strength was the way he built each act up before they came on, the fact he could pronounce their names, and he had remembered all the salient facts and achievements, was greatly appreciated and not something you see very often on magic show galas!"  

You can listen to our previously recorded 'Conversation with...' Aonghus, in which he discusses emcee'ing at length, by clicking on his name on the left panel.

IMN 002 - In conversation with... Aonghus McAnnally

TV and radio presenter & producer, variety entertainer and magic Gala Show emcee extraordinaire Aonghus McAnally joins us for a chat.  Aonghus discusses how he started in the entertainment business and offers pearls of wisdom that should be required listening for all those wishing to aspire to being professional entertainers.  Aonghus will emcee the IBM British Ring Gala Show in September in Southport and here he lets us in on some of the material he has been working on.  You can listen or download below

DOWNLOAD THE MP3